City of Memphis exploring possibility of leasing naming rights of Liberty Bowl to corporation

WATCH: City of Memphis exploring possibility of leasing naming rights of Liberty Bowl to corporation

Updated: August 19, 2019 - 10:42 PM

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium might soon add to its name by having a corporate sponsor.

The city of Memphis hired a Chicago firm to find out how much a corporation would be willing to spend for the naming rights to the stadium.

Similar to how the arena where the Memphis Grizzlies play – FedExForum – is tied to a corporation, UofM is exploring the possibility of leasing the naming rights for the Liberty Bowl to the highest bidder.

According to the contract between the university and a Chicago marketing firm, the firm will examine fair market value of naming rights – how much the city could negotiate based on such factors as signage, social media and impressions.

According to a report from the Sports Business Journal, shipping giant FedEx agreed to a 22-year deal worth $90 million for the Grizzlies’ home arena.

That number would be lower for the University of Memphis because it is not a professional organization.

The study will begin in about two weeks, and it is expected to be completed in three months.